Monday, 29 January 2018

I’ve been owner/operator at The Claudette for a few years now and I think I’ve got myself into the swing of things.

There have definitely been some disastrous days, like when we had a plumbing issue and couldn’t get a plumber to come out but I’ve got through it all.

I spend most of my time in the kitchen but I try to make some appearances in the main restaurant too. I just think it's important to get my face out there.

I must be doing something right. The Claudette was awarded the Best of the Best award this month, which I quickly hung up in a prominent position in the lobby!

I come home about midnight where Oliver is waiting for me. It’s my favourite part of the day.

Or night, I guess. I work nights, partly because Mum, who works for me, hates them but mostly so I can spend more time with Oliver, who also works nights.

We’ve been married for about a year and a half now and I think it was the best decision I ever made.

I was never really the kind of girl who dreamed about getting married but now that we’ve done it, we’re so happy.

Our current schedules are a bit of a downer though. Oliver is off on weekend nights but those are the busiest for me, so we can’t often meet up when all our friends are heading out.

Occasionally, we drag ourselves out bed a bit early to meet up for Sunday brunch, which seems to work for most. Last time, we met up with Elspeth and Josh.

They’re getting married in November and are so much further ahead in their planning than I was at the same point. Sometimes I wonder how anything actually happened with how lazy I was at planning!

I’m definitely not the world’s greatest organiser but I did eventually get it done, so I told Elspeth I’d be happy to pass on any contacts if she needed them.

I doubt that will be necessary though. It sounds like she has everything under control already, even this far out.

On our way out of the restaurant, we ran into Emma and her new girlfriend, Cleo.

I’m pretty sure Emma wasn’t planning on introducing Cleo to any family yet but she should probably just be thankful she ran into me and not certain family members who are far, far nosier than me!

Anyway, Cleo seems awesome and like a really great match for Emma.

She’s been looking for someone for a while now and I think Cleo is the only one to get past maybe two or three dates.

It’s a bit of a desert out there for gay girls, apparently.

I have my fingers crossed for them. I didn’t get to talk to Cleo for long but I’ve ordered Emma to text me some more details about Cleo when she gets a chance!

Probably the only conflict Oliver and I have had since getting married has been about when to start a family. He’d be happy to start tomorrow, while I’d rather wait a few years.

Seeing I’m the one who would have to carry a baby, Oliver deferred to me on that and had agreed to wait.

Nature, it seems, didn’t agree. We recently found out that I’m pregnant. Very early on but pregnant nonetheless.

Physically, I feel okay. I’ve been sick a few times but not to the point where it’s been really disruptive to my routine or anything.

Emotionally, it’s another story. Oliver is thrilled to bits but I’m too shocked to be able to feel excited at the moment.

I genuinely thought I’d have a couple of years ahead of me before I had to think about how to fit a baby into my life and now I have less than 9 months. I’m usually pretty laid back about everything but this has me stressing out!

Running my own business is a huge complication, as I can’t just take maternity leave and continue to be paid, like most women. And I’ll have to find someone to fill in for me too. Oliver and I both working night shifts seems potentially problematic as well.

Oliver isn’t worried at all and is totally sure everything will be fine, which is comforting. I’m not sure how much of that is wishful thinking and how much of it is him maybe seeing solutions that I’m not seeing.

Hopefully, it’s more of the latter than the former. He’s being very positive about our little surprise, so I’m going to try my best to follow his lead.

I just need some more time to get used to the idea and work out what we’re going to do.

Notes:

Title is from Long Night by Guster.

I was NOT expecting this! I probably should have expected it at some point, as Sophie isn't allowed BC (Oliver is, however) but it was a big surprise. I even mentioned Sophie and Oliver probably not starting a family for a while in the last Gottlieb 1 update. But it's happening. Baby Gentry is due in April 2046.

If this had happened any earlier, it could have been financially disastrous for these two but fortunately, it didn't. Sophie and Oliver managed to pay off the last $15,000 of their mortgage this session and still have a decent amount to play around with. I've already sectioned off the back of their hallway (which was too long anyway, because I built and I can't lay out a house to save my life) to use as the nursery. They should be able to decorate it and still have some money left over.

Running a restaurant is expensive, by the way! I've never done it with such a young sim before and I'm noticing a huge difference. At one point, Sophie got done to $0, just from paying her staff. I had to send her home, have her and Oliver work a couple more days and get back in there. The cash bonuses business owners get as rewards really helped! To prevent issues in the future, I keep most of their money in a bank account now, so it builds up interest.

Sophie and Oliver are so sweet together - like how he isn't pushy about the baby but she trusts his optimism in spite of her own stress over the unexpected pregnancy. I hope she can work out how to manage the baby and the restaurant, that is no small matter. And I'm really glad that they were able to pay down their mortgage and keep the restaurant open. I cheated a bit with the General Store, since Raine didn't have to try to work it with new babies, partly because of the glitches with the cash register (I had troubleshooted and had Raine buy it back twice already with the same problem).

I could just imagine Sophie and Oliver, tired from the workweek, but dragging themselves out of bed early on Sunday to meet up with Josh and Elspeth. I'm looking forward to their wedding, and maybe one for Emma and Chloe (I realize it's too early to know if they'll work out, but since you made Chloe for her).

I never would have seen these two together before they actually got together but they just work as a couple! I think Sophie is a fairly optimistic person herself, so with Oliver showing his own optimism about the situation, she's eventually going to get there herself.

I've never had a glitch with a cash register, that I can remember! My main problem with owned businesses is the "sold out" sign appearing at all corners of the lot, rather than the place it's supposed to be in the store. With Sophie's restaurant though, that's obviously not an issue!

I don't see Sophie as much of a morning person, so brunch is a sacrifice for her! But she wouldn't get to see anyone if she didn't make that sacrifice, with her current schedule. :)

Ha, Emma and Cleo better work! I've literally gone to more effort finding a partner for Emma than for any one of my sims before!

Aww this is awesome! I'm super pumped for them to have a baby. It totally fits that she's lazy, took a lifetime to plan her wedding, and can't be bothered to take birth control. I was never terribly good at that myself. :D

I had a hack that stopped my sims from paying out for employees. I ended up going broke with rewinding time, playing long shifts. I also have a million other hacks that make business running easier for me and them.

I am curious how they will fit the baby into their life and current schedules. It's hard owning a business and having a baby, Paloma is lucky that Adam runs it with her. Mostly though, I'm super thrilled for these two and can't wait to see who they take after!

I'm pretty excited too! LOL, I'm also crap at taking birth control sometimes, so it's a good thing I'm so very single! ;)

I actually don't know if I have any mods for businesses. I probably have a couple but I should really look into what else is out there.

I am honestly still trying to figure out what I'll do for Sophie's restaurant, story-wise. Obviously, game-wise, I can just have her ignore it for a while but I'll need to work out a reasonable way she could keep it open during her maternity leave (which will probably be shorter than some of my other sims).